The Sound of Happiness
by Sixty Five Roses
Summary: An altercation between Andy and Rusty leaves everyone upset. Based on the photo of bruised Andy published by James Duff. Please read the trigger warning.


**A/N** **: This story is based on the photo of bruised Andy that was published by James Duff on Facebook earlier this week. I know Rusty is probably not the person who beat Andy up, but I had this idea, so I wrote this anyway.**

 **Trigger Warning** **: This story includes a brief non-graphic mention of sexual assault. If this is triggering to you, you may want to avoid this story.**

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Rusty was the last person that Andy expected to punch him in the face. Sure, the kid could be rude and offensive, but he also knew where the red line was and was mostly careful not to cross it. The fact that things escalated this way was quite surprising and Andy really did not see this coming.

The taste of blood in his mouth was quite strong, and he hoped that he didn't break any teeth. He was lucky that all the teeth in his mouth were his and he intended to keep it this way. His head was pounding and he laid defeated on the floor, closing his eyes and focusing on his breath. What he said or did to piss the kid off, he did not remember. Maybe the blow to the face affected his memory. Taking a deep breath, he pulled himself off the floor and walked towards the bathroom. The kid was nowhere to be found and he was happy for that. He really wasn't sure what switched in Rusty's head, but he really didn't want to be around him until that switch was off again. He took a look in the mirror and groaned. A bruised bump was already forming on his forehead and his lip was split. He checked his teeth, but they all seemed to be well and accounted for. His nose looked fine too. He noticed for the first time that his wrist was hurt. He must have fallen on it when he went down. He inspected his fingers, looking for any visible bruises. He sure hoped that he didn't punch Rusty back. Sharon would kill him. Opening the medicine cabinet, he found some aspirin and popped two pills in his mouth, bending down to drink some water straight from the tap. He then washed his face, hissing in pain as his fingers touched the bruise.

"What on earth is going on here?" he heard Sharon's voice. She went into the bathroom and looked at him, her eyes widening in horror as she saw the darkening bruises.

"I fell. Must have been my blood pressure," he lied.

"Oh, my God, Andy. Are you serious? We need to call 911!" she called out, almost panicked. He caught her arm and pulled her to him.

"I'm alright, sweetheart. I just lost consciousness for a few seconds. I'll see my doctor tomorrow," he kissed her forehead.

"I don't like this, Andy. I mean, it could be a heart attack, or…" Andy placed his thumb on her mouth and smiled at her softly, trying not to wince at the pain of his split lip.

"Don't worry about it. I'm fine. I just crushed into your vase when I went down. I'll buy you a new one." He hoped that changing the subject will bring an end to the conversation.

"I hate this vase. My sister gave it to me for Christmas years ago and I couldn't bring myself to get rid of it, so I…" she smiled. "We should put some ice on that." She pointed at his forehead and gently brought her palm to his cheek. "And maybe you should call your doctor anyway."

"It's not a big deal, Sharon. It's just a bruise. I survived worse than this." He took her hand and then hissed and pulled his hand back. "I think I hurt my hand when I fell. Maybe you're right about the ice." His wrist was a bit swollen, and hurt even more than his face. And Sharon needed to have some control over the situation. It would be better if he gave her something to do for him, just to keep her from worrying about him too much. "And then we should order dinner and watch a movie. Which one did you get us?"

"Uh, some Meryl Streep thing…" Sharon replied absent-mindedly.

"Not one of those where she tragically dies at the end, please," Andy joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"No, it's a comedy. The one with Steve Martin," She wrapped an arm around his waist and they walked out of the bathroom together.

"I like Steve Martin, he's a funny guy," Andy said, hating to see her so upset.

"I know," she smiled and made sure he'd sit on the couch while she got him some ice.

"So, what do you want to eat?" he asked, taking the ice pack she offered him and putting it against the bruise on his forehead. Sharon stroked the side of his face, a soft expression on her face. She looked at him as if she was going to start crying. All the more reason not to tell her how he really got that bruise.

"I don't know," she sighed. Andy pulled her into his arms and kissed the crown of her head.

"Don't be upset, Sharon. I'm fine, everything's okay," he said. He felt her arms coming around him. "I think you need some comfort food. How about pizza?" He felt her nodding against his chest and smiled. He could understand her worry. She only left the house for half an hour to go rent a movie and came back to find a shattered vase and a bleeding man. Maybe he shouldn't have lied about Rusty's involvement, but he still wasn't sure what made the kid flip. He knew that Rusty was anything but happy about their relationship. After everything the boy has been through, his apprehension was understandable. The sound of the door opening startled both of them. Rusty stood there for a moment, looking like a deer in the headlights.

"Is everything okay, Rusty?" Sharon noticed the disturbed expression on her son's face. "What happened to your arm?" Nothing ever escaped Sharon's gaze. Rusty's knuckles were bruised. Rusty looked at Andy, and despite the pain that it caused him, Andy shook his head slowly.

"I… I fell," he responded. Both Andy and Rusty heard Sharon's sudden intake of breath and they instantly knew that she was on to them. She turned to look at Andy and then at Rusty.

"Did the two of you have a fist fight?" she pushed herself off the couch and looked between them several times. "One of you better tell me what happened," she demanded.

"I don't remember," Andy admitted when her gaze lingered on him. Sharon turned to Rusty again.

"I punched Lieutenant Flynn," Rusty confessed, looking downwards as he spoke.

"What did you say to him, Andy?" Sharon turned to look at him again and the anger in her eyes made her cringe.

"I don't remember," he repeated his earlier claim. It wasn't exactly the truth. He remembered entering the kitchen and trying to talk to the kid and getting punched in the face when he spun around. He couldn't recall what he had said to Rusty.

"He didn't say anything, Sharon. It's my fault. I'm sorry, Lieutenant," Rusty said.

"It's okay, kid," Andy replied. He wasn't really okay with that, but there was nothing he could change about what happened.

"Rusty, go to your room," Sharon demanded.

"What?"

"You heard me. Go to your room. I need to talk to Andy," Sharon said, and both men could tell that her voice was controlled. She watched Rusty as he hurried down the hall and after hearing his door clicking shut, she turned back to Andy. "Why did you lie to me about this? And don't try to sell me that you can't remember, because I'm not buying it."

"Sharon, honestly, I don't know what happened. I went into the kitchen, he was there, making a sandwich, I came over and touched his shoulder and he turned around and punched me and then he ran out of the condo. Maybe I spooked him when I touched him, I don't know." Sharon buried her face in her palms and sighed.

"I'm so sorry, Andy," she said, her voice thick.

"Look, Sharon. The kid is obviously having a hard time with our relationship and maybe... It's been five months since we started dating and he's still not used to it. Don't get me wrong, I have strong feelings for you, I do. But maybe we should rethink this relationship." He really didn't want to say this, but he really wasn't looking forward to getting punched in the face by Rusty, or being ignored or ridiculed by him as Rusty has done often since they started dating. He loved Sharon, but even he had his limits.

"Is that what you want, Andy?" He could tell by the look in her eyes how hurt she was.

"Not really, but if he can't cope with us, then maybe it's not the best idea." Sharon turned around, looking into the hall. Andy was pretty sure that she was trying to hide her tears, but he heard her sniffle anyway. "Listen, Sharon. Let's take a break from each other until we decide how to proceed, okay?" When she turned back to him, she looked miserable. "I better leave." He pushed himself off the couch, not without effort and walked over to her. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her cheek. "Go easy on the kid," he said before he located his car keys on the hall table and left the condo.

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Rusty has never heard Sharon crying before. He's seen her shedding tears once or twice, but he's never heard a sob crossing the threshold of her lips. Her emotions were usually so guarded and controlled that sometimes he found it hard to understand what she was thinking at a certain moment. But now, hearing her long wails coming from her bedroom, he felt his heart constricting painfully. He knew it was his fault, but he wasn't sure how he was supposed to fix what he's done.

He hadn't heard the conversation between Sharon and Andy, but he heard the door being shut as Andy left, and then the eerie silence at the condo. It took him a while before he heard Sharon shuffling down the hall and the sound of her bedroom door shutting. The sobs followed a few minutes later, and they shook him to his core. Sharon must have been extremely upset if she was crying, really crying.

Rusty hated facing situations like this. He was bad at comforting people. It seemed that making people cry was something he was much better at. But if he had to sit there and listen to Sharon crying after what he has done, his head would explode.

With a sigh, he left the safety of his room and walked down the hall. If Sharon was in such a bad shape after her conversation with Andy, he must have really screwed up, and he figured some tea would help her calm down. And maybe then they could talk. He wanted to apologize to her, and explain why he punched Andy.

A few minutes later, he walked down the hall with a cup of steaming herbal tea and a big piece of chocolate cake on a tray. He stood outside her door and stared at it for a moment before he worked up the courage to knock. Her sobs ceased immediately. He heard her sniffling several times through the door.

"Sharon, can I come in?" he asked.

"Just a moment," she responded in a shaky voice. He waited patiently for a little more than a minute before he heard her saying that he could come in. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and entered the room. He walked over to the bed and placed the tray on the bedside nightstand.

"I made you some tea," he said and looked at her. Her hair was messy, her face was pale and her eyes were bloodshot. She thanked him quietly, looking downwards. "Look, I'm sorry about what I've done. It was horrible. Is Lieutenant Flynn gonna be okay?"

"Flynn and I…" her bottom lip quivered as she spoke. She shook her head slowly. "Is he really so bad, Rusty? Do you really hate him that much?"

"I don't hate him," Rusty replied.

"Then why?" She took a shuddering breath and tried to compose herself. Rusty looked at her. He didn't really want to tell her why; it was the kind of things he would have told Dr. Joe in their sessions, but not Sharon. But seeing her so broken, with her tearstained face and her disheveled hair, she looked so vulnerable, so fragile. She was allowing him to see her like that, her feelings exposed and raw. It was only fair that he would let her in on what had happened to him.

"He touched my shoulder and I had this flashback," he said slowly. "One of my mother's boyfriends who lived with us back when I was 12; he used to… tap me on the shoulder every time before he would…" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Every time before he assaulted me." Sharon's eyes widened. Rusty could tell that she didn't expect him to share his childhood memories with her.

"Rusty, I'm so sorry," she said and her voice shook again. Rusty took a seat on the bed next to her, suddenly feeling drained. "Can I hug you?" he heard her voice and he nodded slowly, sinking into her arms as soon as she opened them. Her fingers stroked his back, as if trying to soothe him.

"I just reacted, Sharon. It was an instinct. I didn't mean to hurt Andy, I really didn't," he wasn't sure what inside him broke, but he couldn't stop the tears.

"I know, honey. I know you didn't mean it," she said softly, and he didn't need to see her face to know that she was crying again. He wasn't sure how long they held each other, supporting each other's weight, but eventually, they drew away, wiping tears and taking a deep breath in unison.

"Did you and Andy break up?" he dared to ask, not sure which answer would make him feel better.

"We might," Sharon admitted.

"Is it because of what I've done?"

"Andy and I have been quite lonely for many years, Rusty. After your heart is broken, it's so hard to open up to the possibility of loving someone else again. Andy and I found the courage to do that. We knew there may be people in our lives who would not support our relationship, but we thought they will come around. And it hurts so much when someone you really love can't be more accepting of such an important choice you've made for yourself." Sharon's explanation suddenly made a lot of sense to him.

"Does he make you happy?" he asked.

"He does. And I love him, I really do, Rusty." The way Sharon's eyes glistened when she said that made Rusty pray that he didn't ruin it for her completely.

"What can I do to fix it, Sharon?" He hoped there was something he could do.

"Nothing, it's not your job to fix things between Andy and me. It's my job," Sharon explained.

"But I can explain myself to him, right? And apologize."

"Yes, you do need to apologize. You don't have to tell him why you reacted the way you did, but it's alright for you to request, nicely, that he would avoid touching you," Sharon suggested.

"Thank you, Sharon," he wrapped his arms around her again. "I love you, and I want you to be happy. I'm sorry for being such a jerk to you and Andy."

"It's behind us now," Sharon shrugged as she pulled away from the hug. "I'm going to call him now, so if you want to get your apology out of the way, you can go first." Rusty nodded and watched her as she called Andy and handed him the phone. Andy answered after three rings and Rusty could hear it in his voice that he was surprised to hear him. He kept his apology rather short and told Andy that he hoped what he's done will not affect his relationship with Sharon.

"You better make her happy," he said, intending to end the call.

"I promise, and I think you already know you can trust my word," Andy replied and Rusty said goodbye and handed the phone back to Sharon. As he went to his room, he could hear her giggle into the phone, probably at one of Andy's silly jokes. Her laughter rang out even after he closed the door to his room and he leaned against it and closed his eyes, smiling to himself. He knew he would need to put a more serious effort into accepting the relationship, but when he heard Sharon's laughter again, he knew that this was the sound of happiness and that was all that mattered.

THE END

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 **As always, I would love to know what you thought about this story, so feel free to leave a review or send me a PM.**


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